Archive for 2024

Two routes in the area will be reduced to one lane as Missouri Department of Transportation crews perform edge rut repairs today and Thursday from 7:00 in the morning until 2:00 in the afternoon. The first road is Highway 32 in Iron and Dent Counties. This section of roadway is located from Route KK in Iron County to Highway 72 in Dent County. The second road is Route KK in Reynolds and Iron Counties and this section of roadway is located from Highway 32 in Iron County to Route TT in Reynolds County. The work zones will be marked with signs. Motorists are urged to use extreme caution while traveling near the area. For additional information, contact MoDOT’s Customer Service Center toll-free at 1-888-ASK-MODOT (1-888-275-6636) or visit www.modot.org/southeast.

The Salem Board of Aldermen held their regular meeting Tuesday night at the Salem Community Center@The Armory. At the meeting, the board heard from Krista DeLuca about the city’s 2023 fiscal year audit which in her opinion, the financial statements were presently fairly. She noted in her presentation the positive increase in the net position of the city over the last fiscal year. A deficiency reported every year is that there is not enough staff to segregate the duties. Finance Director Stacey Houston gave her update on the current years revenues and expenditures saying revenues for February were down about 3.5%. She did say the city has collected $365,390 from the additional one cent sales tax passed by voters last year. The board approved Resolution #5-2024 allowing the mayor to sign an addendum to the contract for floodplain management with the MRPC to extend their services for the city as they were selected for an audit. They also approved Resolution #6-2024 allowing the mayor to renew an agreement between the City of Salem and Health and Senior Services for the purpose of the taking and monitoring of water samples for testing for sewer shed disease trends. The board passed Resolution 7-2024 allowing the mayor to enter into an agreement to provide sewer and water line insurance on private property using the city’s letterhead. The board also passed Resolution 8-2024 that allowed the mayor to enter into an agreement to apply for additional funding for the lead service line inventory identification. This resolution had to be in place quickly as the application is due Friday. The board tabled bids on chain link fencing for the industrial park water tower and well #4; and approved the bid from Rictor Plumbing LLC in the amount of $6,720.29 for the repair of the water damage at the old city hall auditorium. The board heard and approved the second reading of 11 bills dealing with vaping and smoking in city buildings and properties. The board heard the first and second readings of Bill #3600, then approved the bill for the engineering services with Archer-Elgin. Interim Public Works Director Joe Chase said he is working on itineraries with department heads to provide staff summaries. He said the water department identified problems with steel head water meters and they are working to replace three per week. Chase also said he is looking at eatery grease traps outflow and having them properly cleaned to insure they meet compliance. Alderman Kala Sisco invited people to attend the Community Involvement Meeting on Thursday, March 21st at 5:00 at the Armory, mainly discussing a fireworks show. The city has $10,000 budgeted for the display. The board then went into closed session.

The Missouri Department of Conservation reminds Missouri hunters and anglers that related annual permits expire at the end of February, including 2023 permits for small game, fishing, trout fishing, and combination hunting and fishing. You can buy Missouri hunting and fishing permits from one of many vendors around the state, online at mdc.mo.gov/buypermits, or through MDC’s free mobile apps, MO Hunting and MO Fishing, available for download through Google Play for Android devices or the App Store for Apple devices. Save time by buying hunting and fishing permits for multiple people in a single transaction. Select the “Additional Customer” option during the permit purchase. Avoid having to manually renew permits each year by using MDC’s Permit Auto-Renewal Service. It allows customers to enroll eligible permits in a service that will automatically renew their permits prior to the start of the next season or permit year. The process was designed to ensure customers never have expired permits when they need them most. Learn more about this service at mdc.mo.gov/permits/permit-auto-renewal. Commercial and lifetime permits can be purchased only through the MDC Permit Services Unit by calling 573-522-0107 for an application.

At the special Salem Memorial Hospital board meeting held Sunday, after new Board member Karen Brown was sworn in, the board discussed the “Dancing with the Salem Stars” event thanking all the staff, the foundation, dancers, sponsors and the volunteers that made it possible. Upon a motion by Board Member Zach Moser, the board initially discussed to declare the office of the chairman vacant and open for a replacement in open session. After much discussion in open session about the direction of the board and the financial situation of the hospital, the board went into closed session where Board Chairman Ray Bruno resigned his position. Back in open session, the board chose Mike Swyers to take over as chairman, Wanda Tatum as vice-chairman and Karen Brown as the secretary until the board meeting after the April election. The meeting was then adjourned.

The Dent County Commissioners met Monday morning for their regular meeting. Dent County Treasurer Denita Williams brought in the CART funds received. She said this February, the county deposited $77,753.79 compared to $75,409.62 from February of 2023. That is an increase of $2,344.17 from last year’s total and year-to date, the CART funds are up $4,064.30 or about a 2.67% increase. In the road report, District 1 Commissioner Wes Mobray said rock would be added and grading done on Dent County Road 2480 while only grading will be done on county roads 4210 and 6600. Mobray said a load of pea gravel and sand was being taken to the Bunker City Hall. District 2 Commissioner Gary Polk said rock would be added and grading done on Dent County Road 2200 while only grading would be done on county road 4410. Rock would also be added to county road 2370. Presiding Commission Gary Larson said there will be no commission meeting Thursday due to the commission’s CCAM training. Dent County Clerk Angie Curley said TODAY is the first day for candidates for county offices to register at the courthouse for the August 6th Primary. The last day to sign-up will be March 26th at 5:00 at the courthouse. To find out what you need to bring with you when you file, call the Dent County Clerk’s office at 573-729-4144. Different offices have different requirements so call before you come to sign up. Curley said the last day to register to vote for the April 2nd election is March 6th. She will also be doing a voter registration drive at the Salem High School on March 5th. Absentee voting continues through April 1st in her office. State Representative Ron Copeland talked with the commissioners about the Highway 19 bridge at Standing Rock and MoDOT has in indicated to him that when the preliminary plans are complete they would let Copeland know. He was also updated by Commissioner Mobray about the National Park Service Superintendent Jason Lott wanting to add boulders to prevent people from riding through the creek at Tan Vat. There was discussion on Senate Bill 190, the use tax, a speed limit bill for county roads as well as some discussion on other new bills being introduced. Michael Clancy from Reno Dry was in to offer a free inspection of the courthouse to determine how much moisture is getting into the masonry from the ground. As moisture gets into the masonry, it hastens the deterioration through the salt in the moisture. Reno Dry has an electromagnetic system that forces the moisture out of the masonry and preserves older buildings. The commission approved allowing them to do a free inspection. They offer a three-year money back guarantee and a 25-year warranty. American Automotive was in to ask for truck crossings to be installed on his road and they would also like to get the speed reduced on the road. The commission told them they need to get a petition signed to create the speed limit. They will order the truck crossing signs. Corky Stack of AEA Design Group was in to discuss the work on the Christmas lights on the courthouse and some possible wiring problems in the controller and from the protective cover. New controllers have been ordered and once they are installed, TrimLights feel that will take care of the problem. Stack brought in a change order that shows a $17,000 contingency reduction from the contract with Alexander Construction for the electric work that now will not be done by Alexander Construction. The commissioners then went into closed session. At the last meeting, Brandi Richardson and Eric Meusch from the Dent County Extension came in with the 2023 Extension report, an update on the Junior Livestock Committee and other updates. The Commission voted to re-appoint Sherman Odom and Jeff Sellers to the IDA Board and they added Jenna Deason to the board. The next meeting of the commission will be Monday, March 4th at 9:00 at the courthouse.

The Salem Board of Aldermen will hold a special closed session meeting this afternoon at 4:00 to discuss personnel at the Salem Community Center@The Armory. This meeting is NOT open to the public. Then the Salem Board of Aldermen will hold their regular meeting at the Armory at 6:00. After public comments, the board will hear the 2023 fiscal year audit presented by Krista Deluca before Finance Director Stacey Houston gives her update on the current years revenues and expenditures. The board will discuss Resolution #5-2024 allowing the mayor to sign an addendum to the contract for floodplain management with the MRPC to extend their services due to the city being selected or an audit. They will also discuss Resolution #6-2024 allowing the mayor to renew an agreement with City of Salem and Health and Senior Services for the purpose of taking and monitoring of water samples for the testing of sewer shed disease trends. The board will also hear Resolution 7-2024 allowing the mayor to enter into an agreement to provide sewer and water line insurance on private property with the city’s blessing. The board will heard bids on chain link fencing for the industrial park water tower and well #4; and bids for plumbing work for the damage at the old city hall auditorium. The board will hear second readings of 11 bills dealing with vaping and smoking in city buildings and properties, and the reading of Bill #3600 for engineering services with Archer-Elgin. After the reports of city officials, the board will go into closed session. The regular meeting is open to the public.

Saturday night at the Salem High School Gym, the return of the SMH “Dancing with Salem Stars” was held in front of an enthusiastic crowd. This year’s winner was Rosalie Wright and Cameron Greener with the team of Brett Capps and Shelly Bland taking second. The judges Honorable Mention went to Tiera Lewis and Skitter Lewis, and the People’s Choice Award went to April Greener and Caleb Shepherd. Congratulations to all the winners and a huge “thank you” goes out to all the dancers who participated in the competition and the Salem Academy of Dance young dancers for their routines.

Courtwarming was held last Friday night at the Salem High School Gym in front of a large crowd between the Salem JV and varsity boys basketball games. The Courtwarming King was Wyatt Martin with Neely Leathers selected as the Courtwarming Queen. Congratulations to the these young people and the entire Courtwarming Court.

The Salem Varsity and JV Scholar Bowl teams participated in the SCA Tournament. The Varsity team took 3rd place in SCA play as Marshall White took 1st overall and Rory Dahms finished 7th in individual scoring. The Varsity team is comprised of Rory Dahms, Eli Brakensiek, Carter Foster, Marshall White, and Preston Duncan. The Salem JV Scholar Bowl captured 2nd place in SCA play as Noah Gerischer took 4th place in individual scoring. The JV team is made up of Noah Foster, Noah Gerischer, Haiden Shaw, Emmett Headrick, William Garner. Congratulations Tigers!!

The Salem Police department released these reports for the dates of February 3rd through February 16th there were a total of 196 calls for service. Officers with the Salem Police Department conducted 11 traffic stops for various traffic violations with 3 resulting in a summons or arrest. Officers conducted 2 traffic accident investigations along with 16 informational reports. Of the calls for service and traffic stops, these reports were generated. On Monday, February 5th at approximately 10:00 in the evening, officers located a female subject who had an active probation warrant for the delivery of a controlled substance. The subject was identified as 33-year-old Courtney Mendenhall of Salem who was arrested and incarcerated at the Dent County Jail with a bond of $2,000 cash or professional surety. The next day on Tuesday, February 6th about 10:00 in the evening, Salem Police officers located a male subject who had active Probation and Parole absconder warrants. The subject was identified as 40-year-old Scott Coomer of Salem, who was arrested and incarcerated at the Dent County Jail with no bond. On Wednesday, February 7th approximately at 2:30 in the afternoon, Salem Police officers located a male subject who had active warrants for his arrest through the Dent County Sheriff’s Office. The man was identified as 24-year-old James Wallace of Salem, who was arrested and incarcerated at the Dent County Jail with no bond. On Monday, February 12th at approximately 11:52 in the morning, Salem Police officers located a male subject who had active warrants for possession of a controlled substance. The subject was identified as 22-year-old Gavin Williams of Salem, who was arrested and incarcerated at the Dent County Jail with a no bond warrant. On Thursday, February 15th right around midnight, officers located a male subject who had an active warrant for failure to register as a sex offender. The person was identified as 55-year-old Jens Moller of Salem, who was arrested and incarcerated at the Dent County Jail with a bond of $5,000. Contact the Salem Police Department at (573) 729-4242 if you have information regarding any ongoing investigation.